Mom’s Musings

(Here’s another lovely image from Snapshots of Joy. It looks “harvest-y”, so appropriate for a Thanksgiving post.)

Since I have started working outside the home five hours per day, I have REALLY missed the time I used to spend in the kitchen. Did I mention how much I LOVE to cook and bake? So, when we got home from our Thanksgiving Day worship service, and after a quick lunch and popping the turkey in the oven for dinner tonight, I decided to have fun with a dessert. I selected a Land O Lakes recipe for Caramel Apple Pudding Cake. The recipe is available here. The only changes I made to the recipe were:

1. I used four apples rather than two.
2. I omitted the nuts, because Cadet-O doesn’t care for them.
3. I put the whole kit-and-caboodle in my slow cooker, turned it to HIGH, and will expect excellent results in four hours. The oven is busy with the turkey, so this was my alternative.

I’ll let you know how it turns out, but, like I said, I’m having a great time in the kitchen. This is my FUN, and I’m thankful to have the time today to do some experimentation.

Hope you all have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons sugar (heaped a little)

3 Tablespoons shortening or bacon drippings

4 level teaspoons salt

4 cups scalded liquid

1 package dried yeast

½ cup lukewarm water

14 to 16 cups flour (You will have to judge this amount when you knead; add flour just until it won’t stick to your hands)

Method:

Combine sugar, shortening and salt; pour scalded liquid over and dissolve.

Dissolve the yeast in ½ cup lukewarm water. Do not add yeast to other mixture until cooled. If it’s too hot it will scald the yeast and it will not rise.

Mix in flour and knead until it is springy and squeaks.

Let rise in a warm place (approximately 82 degrees) until it is doubled in size or more, then with fists push down and divide into four loaves, and place in thoroughly greased pans. Let rise in pans until double in size.

Heat oven to 400 degrees for the first 10 minutes, then turn down to 350 degrees and bake for 35 to 50 minutes more, depending on your preference.

I seem to remember that my Grandma Schmitz was usually taking this delicious bread out of the oven just as we were arriving for a visit. I so enjoyed a fresh slice of her bread, spread with butter, or sometimes made into a hearty sandwich. I would tell her that it was the best bread in the whole world, and when I was a bit older she gave me the recipe. Now, I usually bake bread that is at least half whole wheat, but this bread truly brings back memories for me. If you try it, use the bacon drippings, because that is SO good.

Minestrone Soup (Serves 30)

First Ingredients:

5 pounds beef stew meat

Olive oil for skillet

¼ cup McCormick Beef Base (this is a condensed, pasty form of bouillon that requires refrigeration)

1 cup water

2 bay leaves (remove when the meat is tender)

10 whole allspice (remove when the meat is tender)

First sauté the beef stew meat in the olive oil until browned. Add the water and beef base. Once this boils, reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 2 ½ hours, until the meat is tender.

Next ingredients:

2 ½ cups chopped onion (or ½ to ¾ cup of dehydrated onion)

5 cloves garlic, minced (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)

13 or 14 cups water

More beef base (I think I used ¼ cup)

5 or 6 stalks celery, thinly sliced

2 large potatoes, peeled and diced

1 small head cabbage, shredded

40 ounces of canned beans, such as pinto beans or kidney beans

2 or 3 (28 ounce) cans crushed tomatoes (depends on how tomato-y you like the soup)

4 teaspoons Italian seasonings, such as oregano, basil, marjoram (or seasonings of choice)

2 ½ cups fine pasta (optional)

Once the stew meat is tender, cut it into smaller bits, if desired, and store in the refrigerator while you prepare the broth.

Stir the beef base, onions, garlic, celery, diced potatoes and dehydrated vegetables into the water and simmer until vegetables are tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Add the pasta and stir frequently, until the pasta is done (Follow package directions.).

Add the cooked stew meat, the canned beans, and the Italian seasonings, and heat thoroughly.

Serve with Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top, and crackers, if desired.

FRUIT DUMPLINGS (from the More With Less Cook Book)

Prepare 3 cups finely chopped fresh fruit. Use apples, peaches, rhubarb, etc. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 °.

Prepare 1 recipe biscuit dough (below). Roll dough into large rectangle on floured board. Cover thickly with fruit. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Roll up like jelly roll and cut into 1″ rings. Place in greased 9 x 13″ baking pan.

Combine in saucepan:

1 cup sugar

1 Tablespoon flour

1 cup cold water

Let come to a boil and pour over dumplings. Bake 45 minutes. Serve warm with milk or vanilla ice cream. Serves 8.

BASIC BISCUITS

Sift together in a bowl:

2 cups flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

Cut in ¼ cup shortening.

Add ¾ cup milk all at once, stirring until soft ball is formed.

Turn dough onto floured board; knead lightly 20 times. Roll or pat dough ½” thick. (If you really make biscuits, you would bake them on an ungreased baking sheet for 10-12 minutes at 425 °.)

PUMPKIN YUM

Make enough pumpkin pie filling for 2 pies. Here’s the recipe for the pie filling first:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
4 large eggs
1 can (29 ounces) pumpkin
2 cans (12 fl. ounces each) condensed milk

Mix sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves in small bowl.
Beat eggs in large bowl. Add the sugar-spice mixture to the beaten eggs. Stir in the canned pumpkin. Stir in the milk, one can at a time.
Pour the pumpkin pie filling into a 9″x13″ baking pan.
Sift one package of yellow cake mix over the unbaked filling.
Sprinkle 2 cups chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans) over the cake mix.
Drizzle 3/4 cup melted butter over the top.
Bake at 350 degrees for one hour.
Let cool at room temp., and then refrigerate. Serve with whipped cream. Yummy!

6 beef hotdogs, thin-sliced (like pennies)
4 large cooked potatoes, diced
1 Tablespoon dried onion flakes
¼ cup melted butter
1 cup cooked peas
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 teaspoon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together. Cover and bake 1 hour at 350 degrees. Serves 8.

If you wish to start with uncooked potatoes, just peel and dice them, and cook them in a small amount of salted water until almost tender, 15 minutes or less. Cook frozen peas on top of the diced potatoes during the last five minutes of cooking.

(This recipe is from My Favorite Recipe Cookbook published by the Lynden Tribune in June 1988. The lady who submitted this recipe, Gay Weidkamp, says, “This is a great way to use leftover boiled potatoes and vegetable from last night’s dinner.)

2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 ½ cups dairy sour cream
1 ½ cups mayonnaise
1 cup finely chopped green onions (with tops) OR finely chopped red onion
1 teaspoon salt
½ to 1 teaspoon dried tarragon leaves, crushed
1 teaspoon dry mustard
¼ teaspoon pepper
2 or more cloves fresh garlic, peeled and minced finely

If you are pressed for time, you can thaw the spinach by steaming it lightly. Be sure to press as much moisture as possible out of the spinach.
Mix all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour. Serve with rye or rice crackers or raw vegetables if desired. Makes about 5 to 5 ½ cups dip.

(This recipe is a modified version of the dip recipe from my Betty Crocker’s Cookbook.)

Curried Chicken

(This recipe is from the Sunset Cook Book of Favorite Recipes published in 1978.)

3 Tablespoons salad oil

3 Tablespoons curry powder

2 large mild onions, chopped

3 tart apples, peeled and chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

2 Tablespoons dry mustard

½ teaspoon ground ginger

1 ½ teaspoons salt

¼ teaspoon liquid hot pepper seasoning

1 ½ cups regular-strength chicken broth

1 can (13.5 fl.oz.) coconut milk

4 whole chicken breasts, skinned, split, boned, and cooked

Condiments

Heat the oil in a deep skillet over medium heat. Add curry powder, onion, apple, and garlic; cook and stir until onion is limp. Stir in the mustard, ginger, salt, hot pepper seasoning, broth, and coconut milk. Cover and simmer 30 minutes or until apples are tender.

Add cooked chicken breasts, cover, and simmer until chicken is heated. Transfer to a serving platter. Pass your choice of condiments. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Condiments. Raisins, sliced green onions, shredded coconut, chopped peanuts, sliced bananas, and finely chopped chutney.(The only condiment we used was raisins.)

I served this curry with steamed broccoli and LaBrea Bakery roasted garlic loaf from Costco.

One ingredient which makes this dish special is fresh curry powder. I purchase mine from The Spice Hut. You can choose how spicy (or not) you want the curry to be. For our family I selected Garam Masala which is mild but flavorful.

Sometimes we really enjoy a big breakfast-type meal for dinner. Yesterday, I got some decaf coffee brewing, and mixed up some orange juice to serve with whole wheat buttermilk pancakes and sausage. It was so good!

Usually I serve a pork link sausage with such a meal, but tried a new sausage which I sampled recently at Costco: Sausages by Amy, Apple and Gouda Cheese Chicken Sausages. The sausage was on the sweet side, making it a good accompaniment to the meal. Also nice to know, they contained no nitrates, nitrites or MSG.

My pancake recipe is a combination of a traditional buttermilk pancake recipe and a whole wheat pancake recipe given to me by a friend 25 years ago. For these pancakes to be light and tender, it’s best to grind your own wheat right before making them. We prefer hard white wheat. The red wheat is heavier and gritty-er (not a word, I know) and the soft white wheat doesn’t have enough substance. So, here’s my recipe:

WHOLE WHEAT BUTTERMILK PANCAKES

Ingredients:
6 eggs, separated
3 cups buttermilk
3 cups water
½ cup vegetable oil
6 cups whole wheat flour (freshly ground)
2 Tablespoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 ½ teaspoons salt

Pour egg yolks, buttermilk, water and oil in large bowl and blend.
Combine dry ingredients and sift into the liquid mixture. Mix lightly.
Beat egg whites until they will stand in peaks and fold in gently.
Bake on heated griddle which has been lightly greased.
Makes 20 to 24 griddle cakes.

We’ve been out of home made bread for about a week now. With so many errands to run and back-to-school shopping to do, sometimes baking falls by the wayside. So, today, I’m baking bread. The recipe is elsewhere on my blog. I’m also making a granola recipe which we have enjoyed for the past 25 years. It’s Simple Granola from the More With Less Mennonite Cook Book. So - without further ado - here is the truly simple, and truly tasty granola recipe:

SIMPLE GRANOLA

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
Combine in large mixing bowl:
3 cups whole wheat flour
6 cups rolled oats
1 cup shredded coconut
2 teaspoons salt
Blend together separately:
½ cup water
1 cup oil
1 cup honey
2 teaspoons vanilla
Add blended liquids to dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Spread out on 2 greased cookie sheets and bake 1 hour, or until dry and golden.
Store in covered containers.